Is your Christmas an adventure?

Expectations logged in our minds from Christmasses past tend to be the paradigm from which we approach Christmas. It can be unsettling when Christmas doesn't go quite the way one expects and one may think one is having the worst Christmas. If one decides to just expect the unexpected, well then Christmas becomes an adventure, and so ours did. We knew J2 would not be flying home. We hoped the rest of us would spend Christmas Eve and day together. After an interesting time locating the meat thermometer, which happened to have travelled 11 kilometers to J4's absent friends house, J3 and J4 went to work. They wound up having to work until gone 8:00pm, after which more adventures began. While the turkey cooled its heels, they went to find J1. J1 wound up being so sick that j3 and j4 delivered food to him and let him sleep. Four us then ate the turkey together followed by j3 and j4 delivering more food, this time to their workplace, the infamous Dominos. After their food run they had a dog run to care for a friends dogs who had suddenly been returned to their home. Finally the four of us that were home opened gifts late at night, tried to watch a movie, all fell asleep...and well....all the Christmas baking is still in the fridge! Today at least four of us head for our grandparents and wonder what adventures will await us for this day.

Grandparent void

This past weekend we did something we have long been tardy in doing....we visited a family who have claimed us as grandparents to their children. Thankfully this little family also has found grandparents who live close by to adopt for their kids. This visit and other families I have connected with over the past month brought to my mind the sad fact that there are untold numbers of children who have no grandparents. They may be separated by distance or death. There are children and their parents who long for the participation of an older couple in their family lives. My own family was blessed by adopting an older lady from our church as 'grandma' when grandparents were far away. Age does not diminish the significance or responsibility of one to interact with the community.

Daily showers--our north american right?

Last week on the mount was an interesting experience. Going without the normal northamerican amount of water allowance for showers led one to reflect on the state of water in the world. My african colleagues seemed unflummoxed by our lack of shower water due to the water crisis. The north americans were panicked. No showers for 6 days, finally rainwater to wash ones hair by the weekend. How much we north americans do take our daily showers for granted? Do we actually need to take daily showers? Most of the world's population is not privy to such extravagance. Overall the experience was valuable and alerted one to the unthinking presumption we North Americans can have about our right to a continuous abundance of water for our personal use. Yes, everyone needs clean water to drink. This is a basic human need, and yet, not all of humanity even has this basic need met. In North America, we cannot forget, we live a life of priviledge and often unthinking ingratitude. Daily showers are a priviledge not a right. Yes, today, I finally had the priviledge of a hot shower and was never so thankful in my life.

The lonely racoon!

Empty beaches

It sometimes amazes me, I live in a world of billions of people, and yet, I can walk the east beaches at Canada's southern tip and they are empty. It was still warm enough to wade in the slightly chilly water. The sun had not yet dropped too far. Miles of golden sand, waves lapping the shore, and the only sign of life, one enormous raccoon ambled out of the woods to drink at the lake edge.

Family haunts...

Lucy Maud Montgomery once wrote that a house never became a home until there had been a birth and a death there. I disagree. A house becomes a home as families live their lives together and build memories. This summer was a time of renewing relationships with many family members close and extended, filling our house with memories. Likewise, special places visited become a cherished memory as the moment is shared with special people. We will never forget vacationing with our two youngest making wisecracks from the back seat. J's #1 and #2, wish you could have been with us!

The overdue promised picture!

Finally, at last, I have time to post the promised photo of our bike ride in Nassau. It was fabulous and recommended for anyone who visits there. We avoided bike peddlars until we exited the customs building. Close to the street we found someone peddling bike rentals. This time we covered the western half of the island. The water was an incredible crystal blue offset by white sands. I recommend getting one of the more expensive bikes as ours broke down in the middle of the island. Fortunately I travel with an expert mechanical technician as spouse!

Family news

Once again we are empty nesters, this came home after I had to downsize the milk in my grocery cart today. We had a fun filled two hectic days in the GTA visiting Niagara Falls and Toronto's CN tower before sending the youngest off to England. He arrived safely and is preparing to head to Mattersey Hall for the end of September. Jo is back at Redeemer....eight months until graduation!!! You go girl!

Family news

Sadly the engagement is definitely over.

B.C. Bathrooms! The height of cleanliness.

I think B.C. has the most highly advanced washroom technology I have ever used. At "The Cactus Club" last night I discovered the toilet seat was covered in plastic. You push a button before you use the toilet and the plastic rotates to give one fresh plastic to sit on! Yay, for North American technology in the bathroom!

The bride price

This morning, following church, I was offered 10 goats and 3 sheep for my youngest daughter. He has promised to wait for her to finish school.

Engagement photos

Jeremy and Tabatha, June 2006

Family news

Jeremy and Tabatha just got engaged! I will hopefully post a photo tomorrow. No wedding date as of yet. They would like to get married in England.

And the bride wore black

Last Sunday I had the privilege of being invited to an Old Colony Mennonite wedding. As we drove up to the plain white wooden church I noticed my young friend, the bride, standing outside the church with her sister. They both carried large black Bibles. The bride's dress, although black, was fairly intricate. The many pleated skirt fell from the stitched bodice to just below the bride's knees. Her hair was unadorned and flowed freely. Her sister wore a light grey dress with puffy sleeves. We entered the church and sat with the men on the right side. The left side was entirely women and children. At the front of the church many of the women wore black with veiled bonnets leaving the face exposed. The bride and groom entered the church from the front with twelve elders dressed in black suits, no ties. The elders sat across the front of the church while the bride and groom sat facing them. The service then commenced in high German. Occasionally the elder would interject an English sentence for the few English speaking invitees. The hour long service commenced with the singing of a hymn, minus instruments and harmony. Many Scriptures were read in high German before the couple said their vows. Following the ceremony we went to the church basement for a light meal of noodle soup, homemade breads and sausage, cheese, cookies, coffee and wedding cake. A coffee can was passed around to collect donations to the couple, apparently they used to use the bride or groom's shoe.
Apparently the reason for the black dress and somber ceremony is to symbolize the solemnity of the wedding vows. Perhaps this is something we have lost in our society. While I am not advocating all bride's wear black, the message of the solemnity of the covenant the two are agreeing to is well taken. Currently in some regions of the United States couples can engage in a covenant marriage. In this marriage they pledge to do all they can to try to work things out before separating. This runs counter cultural to our easy divorce society. I wonder how many divorces would be less likely to occur if couple's had the support of their community. I have hope for my young friend's marriage. She is surrounded by family and friends who take her commitment seriously and will endeavour to help her and her spouse if struggles arise. It takes a village to raise a child, and it may take a community to grow a marriage.

Kudos to the graduate

Kudos to Jenn, the graduate, who worked long years on and off at school, in restaurants, daycare centre and other places to finally get her B.A. in religion and music. We are proud of you and wish you the best for the future!

Safe travel

The youngest is safely home at last after travelling across much of our vast country in 3 days, pulling 2 overnighters. Having kids stretches one's faith continuously for the rest of one's life--that is not a bad thing. I realize anxious attachment between family members is not healthy, and so it is good to have a God to turn to, to place one's children in His hands and trust them and Him for safe travel through the mountains and whatever weather may transpire. Ultimately God knows the number of our days on earth and is interested in helping us fulfil our purpose on earth.

Back in the best place in Canada to live

We returned home from beautiful British Columbia to find our weather here actually warmer than on the west coast. While we don't have as many rhodedendrons blooming, the spring bulbs are certainly lovely.
Our eldest daughter graduated and to see the glow on her face throughout the grad ceremony was worth the price of the flight. The youngest is currently driving back in a convoy of cars from B.C. and Jo is somewhere between Dallas and Buffalo right now flying home, check her blog for her story! I hope to post pictures of our wonderful weekend soon.

The youngest flies the coop

Yes, the big family news is that Jordan has been accepted to study next year in England in Nottinghamshire at Mattersey Hall, associated with the University of Wales. Today Paul and I fly to B.C. to see Jenn graduate and visit with Jordan before he travels home via a caravan of cars on Saturday--bringing his vast book collection back with him. Jo flies out to meet us tomorrow--exams are done and the packing has begun. Summer can't be far off.

Reflections on doves

There is something about new life that never ceases to capture and amaze. Two doves were hatched on the roof trellis of our gazebo. My husband discovered them as he cleared away a vine. He left the nest undisturbed and we got to see the two fledglings mature to be minatures of their parents. The mother dove sat placidly on the nest for weeks, undisturbed by us observing. This was in contrast to the mother robin who became agitated the moment we stepped out of the door. Perhaps this is why the dove is the symbol of peace. It is interesting the dove also was used to represent the Holy Spirit--the Spirit who brings peace. Early Saturday morning the small doves flew away, perhaps up into the cedar trees.

The paska issue

And so it began the previous Sunday evening when at my in laws I proclaimed I was not making paska this year. My youngest brother in law looked shocked. Hey, I have 3 papers to write and a June 2nd deadline! Later that week I received a phone call from him. His wife had designated him to figure out who was bringing what to the family Easter dinner. Did you guess? I was slated to bring dessert and the pressure to bring paska was applied. I replied I would bring two pies. The next day my youngest daughter came home and exclaimed, "Where's the paska?" Not only was there no paska, but with only one adult daughter home, we decided we were really past the Easter bunny delivering chocolate until grandchildren arrive. I mean, isn't Easter really about celebrating the resurrection of Christ anyway?! Saturday morning came and I realized that maybe making paska actually took less time than making two pies from scratch....and so the process began. By late in the day the fragrance of freshly baked lemon scented bread filled the air and I must admit I enjoyed making it. In lieu of the Easter bunny, Jo and I ran to the store for small chocolate malted eggs to nestle in the icing of the paska which my husband and I then wrapped and ribboned. By 10:00pm all was finished, and they did look good. And so Easter Sunday family dinner I arrived with seven loaves of fresh gift wrapped paska, two already set aside for my older absent children. Yes, my youngest brother in law had a wide, surprised, delighted grin on his face; giving is fun.........and today, I made some headway on the first paper.

The race for warmth!

And so the race began...Friday, March 10th, at 3 p.m. we packed the car and joined the flood of Ontarians heading down I75 in desperate search of sunshine and warmth. By midnight at the Jellico Pass we were surrounded by cars from Ontario driving through the night. We stopped for a few hours in a rest area in Tenessee and then drove on into Georgia. Again we stopped for a few hours and woke up to find more Ontarians waking up as well. We drove on and as we entered Orlando we found even more cars from Ontario. We chatted through open windows as we waited at the toll booth discovering who was from which city. This cameraderie with random Ontarians carried on all week, in the hot tubs at hotels, on the cruise to Nassau, wherever we went we found people from home, many there on similar time share experiences.

The cruise to Nassau was an interesting experience. We landed around 9:ooam and rented a moped which we drove around the eastern half of the island. We stopped at a local beach on Paradise Island and decided to trek down a sandy path to the crystal blue waters. En route a brown snake slithered across the path. I was glad my husband was a few paces ahead of me. Perhaps that's why men in some cultures walk ahead of the women, to clear the path of snakes! As we returned from enjoying the beach, a grey snake crept across our path. By noon we stopped at an island mall where we ate the local curried chicken with rice. The afternoon found us at a local fort beside the Queen's Staircase. I purchased a Bahamian flute and took it into the forts dungeons to hear how it sounded. The acoustics in the dungeons were great! After visiting the colorful market stalls close to the fort we took off via moped again avoiding several mangy looking dogs, all appearing related, who came out to see who was biking down their street. Late afternoon found us in the cool of Christchurch Cathedral replete with whitewashed walls, dark wood ceilings, plaques of past parishioners and a beautiful stained glass window. By 5:00pm we had boarded the ship again and readied ourselves for yet another dinner of several courses including chilled cream of strawberry soup and finishing with Baked Alaska. Late in the evening we returned to our cabin to find our steward had turned down our beds and concocted a dog of towels to welcome us. Hopefully I can upload the pictures soon.

Our last evening in Florida was spent aboard the Jungle Queen in Fort Lauderdale which included a dinner and show on an small island.

They're back!

Yesterday Jenn arrived safely home back in B.C. after a fun filled week in Los Angeles. We had one phone call from Ashland, Oregon, asking for a car problem analysis which we could actually solve over the phone (amazing). Jordan, his bus and ferry trip up the coast behind him, has counted 45 days of school left. Summer is coming! Well, back to another week of cracking the books, writing papers and teaching.

Answer to comment

And so I was asked what parental modelling is....it is, to quote Balswick in "The Family": "Parenting which is high in action and low in content" or again "what children learn is caught rather than taught".....as kids we tend to follow what our parents did instead of what they taught.

Reading break adventures

For those who wonder where Jen is, the last phone call a family member had was from San Francisco. She had heard a drummer on the streets and called Jer so he could hear the drummer too. Jordan is somewhere north of Vancouver on the coast enjoying rain and snow and so not able to canoe. Jo is safely back in Ancaster where it is much warmer than Winnipeg! Exploring our world is part of the joy of living.

Memories

And so this morning as I packed a gym bag to work out at the fitness club after work tonight a sudden memory made me smile. I remember my dad packing his gym bag to work out before work. My dad is closing in on 77 and still works out. Parental modelling is apparently one of the greatest influencers on a child.... so thanks dad! Perhaps if I keep working out I will be as healthy as you are at 77.

The unexpected

Some days the totally unexpected happens. Early in the day we were told our place of work had no money for paychecks this week. We groaned and kept on working. Later on I did a pregnancy test for a young lady. Her friend came in with her and looked very familiar. We chatted for a bit and then I discovered the friend had come in over a year ago to talk about getting an abortion. Telling her parents about her pregnancy was too terrifying for her. We spent about two hours together surfacing her options and considering the ramifications of the choice she was about to make. She left and I never saw her again. I figured she had got the abortion. Imagine my surprise when she brought her baby into the office after her friend's appointment. She was beaming and the baby was a joy to all. I love surprise endings.

At last the pic

Okay kids, at last I had time to figure out how to use the new photo program to load a pic...so thanks again, they are still blooming!, and Jo, if you are reading this in Winnipeg, please email me. I and two friends may need to crash at your pad on Saturday night!

Thank you to my kids near and far

Yes, they arrived, quite unexpectedly, flowers I wondered, from who? The card said it all "Mum, Sorry we couldn't be there to celebrate the big 49th with you. You're the best mother ever and we're not just saying that because it's easier on paper. Happy Birthday! Love from your always perfect children who love you alot. " Always perfect children--now that sounded like a johannaism! It was. This is so cool---flowers from all my kids. I really appreciate them, especially knowing how hard it is to come up with cash for gifts while some of you are in school and some are needing money for debt reduction. The flowers match the music room perfectly--pinks and mauves. You don't have to be "always perfect" to be loved and appreciated. Jo asked if dad got me something for valentine's. Yes, a heart shaped box of chocolates last night. We discovered we can't eat any chocolate before bed or else we can't sleep. Yes, I know, we should have known better! Oh, well. Tomorrow, after we are done teaching, we are heading to the city for dinner. It's been a great week so far (even with time in the trauma unit!) Sorry, having trouble uploading the photo tonight. Trust me, they look lovely and the fragrance of the roses and carnations fills the air.

Laughs in emergency

I couldn't believe it. For the past 2 decades I had made the bed without injury. This morning as I quickly tucked in the sheets before writing a paper, I actually managed to jam a long splinter of softwood up my index fingernail. I couldn't pull it out and so I realized, with frustration, I would have to drive to emergency for help. Fortunately the trauma unit was relatively empty. As I waited to see a doctor, 2 clowns entered my room announcing they were the doctor and nurse! Oh, no, I thought. They were dressed in wild hats with squishy red noses. They asked if my husband needed a heart transplant or had he remembered valentine's day. I assured the clowns my husband did not need a heart transplant--they looked bemused and left. Next, a doctor entered, "Are you the real doctor?" I asked. He looked perplexed. I explained concerning the strange vision I had just had. He relaxed and started to freeze my poor finger. I asked if I would be able to write my paper later on; he thought later would be okay--turns out MUCH later! Then he enquired concerning my paper. I explained I had to write a book review on "Conformed to His Image" by Kenneth Boa. The doctor exclaimed, "Oh, God!!" I started laughing, "yes, that is precisely what the book is about!" Following that we had an interesting chat. I never know what conversations will come out of my courses, or where they may happen!

Christ in the unexpected

Sometimes Christ turns up in the most unexpected places. Saturday I was walking downtown when I met a young lady and her partner. I had encountered them over the years through community work. Sadly she was much changed. Her hair, once long and lovely, was now shaved back radically--the result of chemotherapy. She greeted me with a frail hug. As I listened to her sad tale she suddenly reached towards me and said, "Your button is undone." She then proceeded to do up the top button on my jacket. Her partner explained that she has been doing up peoples' buttons since she left the hospital. A simple act of caring from one who has experienced much darkness--Christ in the unexpected.

A wild ride

Yesterday the object of my husband's affections came here to stay. It became quite apparent by Saturday morning that he was deep in the throws of an affair. By noon, it was evident without a doubt, pictures were all over the computer screen and he was pondering leaving by 2p.m. for Toronto. Spring fever came early this year-- must be the warm weather. A quick phone call tied things up. By 5 pm we had picked up Jo in Ancaster and were heading for Toronto to check things out. We arrived in North York and after chasing up and down New Westminster looking for a certain number without success, we found it. A pleasant young man led us underground to the object of my husband's passion, a beautiful 1987, freshly red painted, red leather interior, Toyata Supra. We slid inside, oh yes, what a car. I caught the passion; Paul paid the bill. Paul and Jo took it for a ride. By 2a.m. we were home with our glistening new possession, bought for a very fair price.
This noon, at a church luncheon, Paul shared his passion with two middle aged buddies. Their eyes twinkled at the mention of the car. To our surprise they both confessed to having owned one or two in their past lives. As much as we are different, we are very much the same.

Paris 1919: amusing ideas

I am currently reading "Paris 1919" by Margaret MacMillan for entertainment on a rainy day before an insane workstretch starts. Quote from p.47 "The Canadians also caught up in the general feeling that borders had suddenly become quite fluid. They chatted away happily with the Americans about exchanging the Alaska panhandle for some of the West Indies or possibly British Honduras. Borden also spoke to Lloyd George about the possiblity of Canada taking over the administration of the West Indies." I would love to know whatever happened to those brilliant ideas!
Another idea: p.54 "Every afternoon the doors opened and footmen carried in tea and macaroons. Wilson was surprised andd somewhat shocked at first that they should interrupt discussing the future of the world for such a trivial event, but, as he told his doctor, he realized that this was a foreign custom that he might as well accept." I definitely think everyone should stop work mid afternoon for tea and macaroons brought in by footmen! Imagine the change in perspective it could engender.

Farewell Christmas holidays

And so it is over, today we drove our youngest two almost three hours back to school. On Tuesday the youngest will fly back to B.C. We spent Saturday night with Jordan and friends playing Rummikub and listening to Ben Folds' CDs. Jordan did manage a fair number of recording sessions while he was home. He calls himself a cross between Beethoven and Ben Folds, not a bad description of his piano work. Both Jordan and Jo anticipate a heavy semester.
The photo is from our Boxing Day expedition which culminated in the viewing of Narnia--well worth the viewing for all lovers of Aslan. (Right click on the picture to refresh picture quality, for the uninitiated, will clear the photo.) The photo introduces Jer's girlfriend....I need to ask her permission to publish her name.
During the holidays I was asked twice by one aging professional and another younger one if I thought having kids was worth it. Is it worth midnight feedings, dirty diapers, tons of tuition expense?.....Children are a gift from God to be welcomed into our homes....sure the workload can be intense when they are younger....no pain, no gain.....it is wonderful to watch each one discover their gifts and talents and start to use them. Each child is a unique individual and as parents we seek to discover their potential and nurture it. Can anything else in life be more rewarding?